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Related Discussions
I don't enjoy BRing... is this necessarily bad?
I just wanted to ask you fellow Sagers about this... plus I'd love to hear how you use BR! I just cannot find the positive usage of if for me and my study habits.
When setting up to take PT I always play the recording of what the instructor will say on the test day, as well as fill in all appropriate bubbling, in addition to the handwritten affidavit. I use the 7sage app for background noise/the instructor saying when it's 5(?I'm not sure) left and then when to put your pencils down. I don't use the timer but always use a special LSAT Wristwatch, to get used to reading a clock manually and linking it to the number of questions left. I try to match the "testing" environment as much as I can to the actual test day to minimize any test taking anxiety (or just my general anxiety) when the real day comes. ALSO!!!!signed up for a digist lsat for a free in Chicago. You guys should look into this if you have not already!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Okay that was long winded sorry, lol. My main problem with BR is that it places this mentality in my head, however hard I try not to let it linger or acknowledge it, that it's OK as in not stressed or even to get it wrong (silly, I know), because even if I get the first choice wrong, it's almost always my second answers (I have finally broke into the 170s threshold and am getting pretty confident with answer selections.) I have always had issues with second guessing myself, where I could see how BR would be useful, but learning this way doesn't seem to solidify in my head that I was actually WRONG. With this mentality, it doesn't uhm, I guess I don't feel the 100% INCORRECT feeling you get when going over a question, confidentiality answering the question without BR, only to find out at the end of the test when you review all the answers it's WRONG. I see the similarity between this approach and BR, you still go back to review to see your question is wrong, but usually, you have the right one for the 2nd question. It's like a small boost to your ego like "well, I just second guessed myself, I'll catch it next time" or "well, I'll improve by test day." But sometimes, it's not that. It's that you just don't know this question stem to a near pefection, and with BR, I don't internalize that knowledge.
Maybe it's just how I've adjusted my brain to studying for this LSAT, but I don't find much use for BR, or maybe not at least this late in this study game.I'm so used to the SHAME associated with taking tests and missing answers in grade school, even college really. You take the test, acknowledge your score, and shamefully stuff away the test to avoid looking or attempting to comprehend the answers you missed... But with the LSAT it's constantly encouraging you to say HEY LOOK HERE, ANOTHER QUESTIONS WRONG! 
And then drill, drill, drill, drill until it comes naturally. I kinda of love the LSAT because of this honestly, even if I've painstaking spent a year of my life studying for this damned thing. Unique little bastard.
Ok to reiterate, Is this bad not liking or using BR? I see so many people loving BR and I feel silly for never having given it a real try, maybe a test or two. I'm honestly shooting for 175-180, and I've hit 175 once YAY! In the 169-170s since Feb. But my GPA is a 2.5 so I have to have an outstanding LSAT score to have any chance at a top school.
Sorry for the long winded post!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I appreciate your comments
Comments
@mcneeleyt I define BR as determining what I do and don't know. If I do not circle a question and get it wrong that tells me that I need to return to the curriculum asap because my strategy is wrong even though I was 100% certain about it. If I circle a question and get it right on both tries that tells me that I'm good on my understanding and strategy for that question type and I can keep tackling it the same way going fwd. If I circle a question and still get it wrong after BR that tells me that I have no clue what's going on and I need to return to the curriculum for the question type. For me BR directs my studies. There's no point in taking test after test and committing the same errors. Most times ppl don't know what they're doing wrong. BR reveals your thought process to see your current understanding and tweak it however necessary for that question type. BR is a pain but if implemented thoroughly in your studies I don't see how you won't see gains. Maybe change your thinking? But if you've gotten this far without BR and you don't see that it's necessary why try to fix what's not broken??
@mcneeleyt i love blind review, but it took me awhile to get there. for me it is an opportunity to test my true understanding of the concepts. i also found a correlation between higher blind review scores and higher timed PT scores... thus i knew that if i focused in on blind review i would do better on my next PT. this was highly motivating.
i also changed my blind review method a few times. now it involves:
1. a clean copy of the test.
2. no timer, just chopin playing quietly in the background.
3. no outside resources, just my brain.
a. this allows me to truly test my abilities and understanding of the concepts.
4. after completing the blind review and scoring it with my timed PT i focus on studying the concepts that i missed rather than the individual questions that i missed. i find this to be much more educative than simply figuring out why i got one specific question wrong.
i'm going to give myself a plug here, but i go into much greater detail in this discussion thread:
https://7sage.com/discussion/#/discussion/10875/blind-review-is-my-best-friend
as with most things academic it is important to remember that everyone learns differently and as @tanes256 says if your current method works, then don't worry too much about fixing it.
@imharris this is great. i'm going to try your method of blind review. sounds great!
@awyeah26 good luck and let me know if you have any questions! for me the biggest breakthrough came when i shifted my focus from my timed prep-test score to my blind review score. now i get much more excited about a high blind review score... currently getting pretty close to 180!
BR is just a tool to help you with your studies. Nobody said you HAVE to do it.
I agree with @imharris. I would also add that, regardless of how much you "enjoy" it, BR is incredibly important. You may not enjoy and that is okay. But I sure enjoy getting better at this test. Just knowing this is immensely helpful in my improvement has been something that I have enjoyed.
Just like RC, the test becomes easier if you are genuinely interested in the passages. Try to be genuinely interested in the stimuli and the flaws themselves. Imagine that you are adding to your internal flaw bank as you read. Simultaneously take an interest in the correlation between heart disease and smoking and the flaw that this argument has. I try my best to enjoy the journey, and just being happy that I am continually improving.
Hope this helps!